Grocon
| Company type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Property development, construction, funds management |
| Founded | 1948 in Melbourne, Australia |
| Founder | Luigi Grollo |
| Fate | Segments entered voluntary administration in November 2020 |
| Headquarters | Melbourne , Australia |
Area served | Australia, India, Middle East |
Key people | Daniel Grollo (former CEO and executive chairman), Carolyn Viney (CEO from 2014) |
| Products | Property development, construction services, funds management |
| Owner | Grollo family |
| Website | www |
Grocon is a privately held Australian company specializing in property development, construction, and funds management, owned by the Grollo family. Established in Melbourne in 1948, the firm later extended its reach to markets in India and the Middle East. In November 2020, segments of the business underwent voluntary administration.
History
Grocon began as a modest family concreting enterprise founded by Luigi Grollo after his immigration from Treviso, Italy, in 1928. Officially formed in 1948, the company initially focused on small-scale concreting assignments such as paving works, car parks for shopping centres, sewer systems, and swimming pool construction. Luigi’s sons, Rino and Bruno, joined the firm at the age of 15. Throughout the 1950s, the business experienced swift growth, concentrating on municipal swimming pools and petrol station projects within Melbourne. Over the subsequent decades, Grocon evolved from servicing local community infrastructure to delivering prominent landmark developments.
During the 1970s, Grocon broadened its scope to include concrete construction for shopping centres and high-rise buildings, while also initiating in-house development projects. At this stage, Luigi Grollo transferred leadership to his sons. In 1975, Grocon secured a significant contract to rebuild Darwin following Cyclone Tracy, completing 400 government residences within an 18-month timeframe. Following this period, the Grollo Group diversified its portfolio across commercial, residential, industrial, educational, retail, sporting, and tourism sectors.
The 1980s saw the sale of numerous family-held developments—including The Hyatt, Shell Corner, 200 Queen Street, and multiple shopping centres—retaining only the Rialto Towers as a key asset.
In 2000, the company divided: Bruno and Daniel Grollo assumed control of construction activities under Grocon, while Rino Grollo maintained ownership of property development interests via Equiset and the Grollo Group. Daniel Grollo was appointed CEO in 1999 and later took on roles such as chairing the Green Building Council of Australia and serving on the Prime Minister's Business Advisory Council.
A further division occurred in March 2012 when Daniel retained leadership of Grocon’s construction division, whereas his siblings Adam and Leeanna assumed responsibility for property development.
In December 2013, Grocon initiated a five-year A$10 billion joint venture with Swiss banking institution UBS, forming UBS Grocon Real Estate—a comprehensive real estate and asset management platform granted first refusal rights over Grocon’s A$2 billion development pipeline. This partnership was chaired by UBS Global Asset Management CEO John A. Fraser, with Daniel Grollo serving as a non-executive director.
In 2014, Grocon was selected as the preferred developer for the 2018 Commonwealth Games Athletes Village located on Queensland’s Gold Coast. On 24 February 2014, Carolyn Viney succeeded Daniel Grollo as CEO; he transitioned to executive chairman while retaining ownership stakes.
By November 2020, Grocon entered administration due to cost overruns exceeding $1 billion on the Commonwealth Games Village project. This financial setback resulted in state government refusal for approvals on new projects within Queensland.
Awards and accolades
Grocon received numerous accolades within the industry, such as being named the 2010 Forest Stewardship Council Developer of the Year and securing the 2011 National Master Builders Association Builder of the Year award. In 2013, it was honored with two distinctions from The National Association of Women in Construction recognizing outstanding and young achievement. Additionally, the company earned the 2011 ANZ–BRW Excellence in Community Practices award, the 2008 Safe Work Australia Best Workplace Health and Safety Management System accolade, along with WorkSafe Victoria’s OHS Management System of the Year.
Industrial disputes
Beginning in 2002, Grocon encountered persistent conflicts with the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) concerning union entitlements at its project sites. These issues involved occupational health and safety protocols, union site access, and policies on badge wearing. The situation intensified when CFMEU picketers obstructed entry to the Emporium site, preventing Grocon employees from accessing the premises without police involvement. Grocon responded by lodging a compensation claim worth A$10.5 million in the Supreme Court of Victoria and pursued contempt proceedings against the union for breaching court injunctions. The court ruled that CFMEU activities had hindered unrestricted site entry. Following this, Fair Work Building and Construction initiated legal action against the CFMEU. In June 2015, a judgment required the CFMEU to compensate Grocon with A$3.5 million in damages.
Swanston Street wall incident
On 28 March 2013, a brick wall bordering a Grocon project on Swanston Street collapsed amid wind gusts reaching , resulting in three fatalities. Early investigations concentrated on evaluating the wall’s structural integrity, examining the influence of billboards installed by Grocon, and assessing the self-supporting design implemented by the previous owner. The billboard extended approximately above the wall and was believed to have functioned like a sail during high winds. Concerns were raised regarding whether Grocon had secured proper permits for the advertising structure and if tree root growth contributed to undermining the wall’s stability.
WorkSafe Victoria brought criminal charges against both Grocon and Aussie Signs, the firm contracted to construct the billboard. Authorities reported that Grocon representatives declined to submit evidence and withheld an engineering report requested by the court on grounds that it was "not relevant."
In November 2014, after pleading guilty to a single workplace safety offense related to hazards posed by the wall rather than its collapse, Grocon was fined $250,000 in the Magistrates Court. Magistrate Charlie Rozencwajg remarked that the event exposed numerous individuals to serious injury or death and constituted a major breach of Grocon’s duty of care but also acknowledged that since then, Grocon had demonstrated responsible corporate behavior. By entering a guilty plea, Grocon avoided a County Court trial where fines could have reached $1.1 million.
Alleged sabotage
In June 2014, Grocon encountered two fires at separate construction sites in Victoria along with multiple suspected acts of sabotage.
List of developments
As of December 2013, Grocon had been responsible for the construction of four out of the five tallest buildings in Australia, located across Melbourne, Sydney, and South-east Queensland. Subsequently, the firm broadened its reach by initiating projects in India and the United Arab Emirates.
| Project | Image | City, State | Country | Completion Date (or anticipated date) |
Height | Description | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| m | ft | |||||||
| Grand Hyatt Melbourne | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | c. 1986 | A 34-storey hotel situated at 123 Collins Street featuring 550 rooms and suites | ||||
| 101 Collins Street | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | 1991 | 260 | 850 | Commercial skyscraper that was briefly Melbourne's tallest structure | ||
| 120 Collins Street | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | 1991 | 265 | 869 | Art Deco office tower; held title as tallest in Melbourne until 2006 and in Australia until 2005 | ||
| ANZ Global Headquarters | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | 1993 | 172 | 564 | A 37-level post-modern office skyscraper located at 380 Collins Street | ||
| Crown Towers | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | 1997 | 153 | 502 | Hotel component of Crown Casino; honored with Master Builders Association Award in 1998; was the largest casino in the Southern Hemisphere upon completion | ||
| Pixel Building | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | Recognized as Australia's first carbon-neutral office utilizing Pixelcrete; winner of Best Sustainable Building and Premier's Sustainability Award | |||||
| Queen Victoria Village | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | A$600 million urban village development surrounding Melbourne Central station; awarded by Australian Property Institute for Property Development | |||||
| Shell House | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | Headquarters for Shell Australia with certification from the Property Council | |||||
| Rialto Towers | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | align=center | 270 | 890 | Twin tower complex; ranked as the second tallest concrete building in the Southern Hemisphere as of December 2020 | ||
| Telstra Centre | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | align=center | |||||
| WTC Wharf | Melbourne, Victoria | Australia | align=center | |||||
(Note: The table is abbreviated here for brevity and business focus. The comprehensive list includes key projects such as Sydney's 1 Bligh Street, Brisbane's 480 Queen Street, Dubai's Burj Khalifa, Mumbai's World One, along with major developments like the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre and AAMI Park.)
External links
- Official website of Grollo Group; operated by Rino Grollo and his family.